Charlie Swan: Vampire Hunter
by Deliriousmoon
Summary: When Charlie's estranged daughter Bella comes to live with him after his ex-wife marries, he thinks the only think he'll have to worry about is bonding with the daughter he barely knows. But Bella soon becomes enthralled by the spell of a powerful vampire and Charlie's left spiraling to combat an evil he's never known before. Twilight perspective-flip/alternate interpretation.
1. Ice

**1\. Ice**

I was tempted to call in sick that first morning. Nothing was wrong with me but intuition tried to keep me welded under the covers. Whether that was police intuition or father's instinct, I'll never know. Either way sick days are hard to come by when you're Chief of Police.

The quiet, early morning was damp and grey as usual, the coffee at the station was bad, and my daughter was...typical. I'd peeked in on her, of course, but the dawn had barely broken over the distant mountains by the time I'd walked out the door this morning and my teenager wasn't moving any faster than the sun that's for damn sure.

The desk in my office was piled with a stack of menial paperwork that I'd almost rather set on fire than read through but, hey, police work isn't all car chases and DUIs. Walking to it, I moved aside some of it and willfully ignored the rest as I sat in the faux leather chair.

I'd barely pressed the mug of coffee to my lips before I heard someone calling for me. "Charlie," I looked up to see Waylon peeking into my office with the confidence of an old friend.

"What is it?"

"We just got report of another animal attack. Out in the woods. Found by a couple of hikers."

"Again?"

"Yeah. Call just came in." He scratched his head. "This is the fourth one in two months."

I took a deep breath and tried to exhale the tightness gnawing at my gut. "Alright, but I want to check out this one personally."

"Body's already moved to the coroner."

I nodded. "Just let me finish my coffee and I'll drive over to Port Angeles."

* * *

"Here's the body, Chief Swan." Doctor Kelly pulled back the sheets and I struggled to remain composed. The body had been generously sewn up but it was still blotched and bloated and… unnatural. A lot of the skin had been torn and ripped but from what I could make out it was a white male of unidentifiable age.

"Third one this month," I said. "It might be time to issue an advisory warning to potential campers in the area. Can you tell what animal? Bear, canine, feline?"

"About that," she hesitated, pulling out a clipboard and looking over her notes. "Usually when these things happen we can decipher what sort of animal attack it is, based on teeth and claw marks left on the cadaver."

"Yeah, I know. What about it?"

"Well..."

"What is it?" She was avoiding looking me in my eyes, an awkward gesture that was childlike and uncomfortable.

"Well, the lacerations and bite marks are consistent with only one animal that I know."

"What kind of animal?"

"Human." I must have looked at her like she'd just said the sky was falling because the next thing she said was, "I know this sounds bizarre, but look over here."

I walked around the table to where she was standing, pointing at the man's left forearm. From elbow to wrist there seemed to be shallow red marks streaking in and out of larger gashes.

"Are those made by fingernails?"

"Looks like it." She pointed her gloved fingers toward his neck. "And here, just faintly it seems I can make out human molar prints."

"What are the puncture wounds right on top of it?"

"It looks almost like the puncture wounds from a snake bite, but they're too far apart and too curved.."

The indentation left on the gnarled tissue that was probably his chest cavity looked oddly like the upper row of teeth on any ordinary human except for two bizarre puncture wounds that followed the crescent shaped row of molars.

"Maybe he got into a fight right before he died," she said.

Except that made no sense. He'd already been identified and I'd made the calls, this guy had been a camping and hiking enthusiast. He was also prone to camping alone. It wasn't likely he had a hiking buddy this time around, and what are the odds he'd meet someone out there in the middle of the woods?

"A human couldn't have ripped him open like this," she said. "Not with just their hands."

"I agree." She'd already cleaned him up a bit, but he was still partially in pieces. His flesh was torn and bruised at multiple sites along his arms and legs, but mostly on his neck and torso.

Speaking of his neck, it had been almost completely ripped out. Exposed muscle, ligaments, and spinal column peeked out at me. Doctor Kelly had cleaned up any residual blood and fluids but there was still something disturbing about seeing the human body so mutilated.

I was about to ask Doctor Kelly for a barf bag when my cell rang. "Swan," I said in greeting.

"Hello this is Ms. Cope from Forks High School. Is this Charles Swan? Isabella Swan's father?"

That caught my interest. "Yes it is. Is something wrong?"

"Yes. Your daughter has been in a car accident on school grounds."

My heart caught for a moment. "Is she hurt?" Did I not put the snow chains on her tires right? I'll never forgive myself.

"She hit her head, but otherwise she's unhurt. She and the other student are already on their way to the hospital."

"Other student?"

"Yes. It seems one of the other students hydroplaned across a sheet of ice in the parking lot and hit Bella's vehicle."

"Oh," that eased the fear just a little. A car accident I could mentally process. "While she was in it?"

"No, she was standing next to the truck when the other student's vehicle ran into it."

"...I don't understand."

"Another student seems to have pushed her out of the way. Someone named," she paused, presumably to check her notes. "Edward Cullen."

The name Cullen sounded familiar but I was drawing a blank. "You said she's at the hospital now?"

"Yes, sir." She paused again. "The vehicles were towed to the impound lot on orders of the officer who showed up."

I didn't really care about the truck. "Yeah, fine. Is Bella at the hospital by herself right now?"

"No. The other student Tyler Crowley was taken to the hospital too. And Edward went with them."

"You didn't send an administrator to make sure she and the driver were okay?"

"Well, it didn't seem that bad to be honest."

"My daughter almost got hit by a car. Are you telling me you trusted the safety of her physical well-being to a teenager?"

"Bella seemed fine. And Edward seems very mature for his age."

I can't believe my taxes pay for this level of gross negligence. "Alright, I'm in Port Angeles right now but I'm on my way." The phone vibrated against my ear. I looked at the screen to see the number for Forks Hospital coming in. "Thank you." I hung up on the school and answered with the hospital. "Yeah."

"Hello this is Forks Hospital. Am I speaking with Charles Swan?"

"Yes. I'm already on the way. How bad was it?"

"Not too bad. She merely got a bump on the head and a few scraps. Nothing loose or broken, but Doctor Cullen hasn't been around to see her just yet."

Cullen? Oh that's right. The Doctor. "Concussion?"

"You're going to have to ask Doctor Cullen about that."

"Do you have the insurance information?"

"Yes we got it from Isabella."

"Okay, I'm on the way." Well at least she kept the insurance card on her like I told her to. I turned back to the coroner. "I'm sorry Doctor, I'm going to have go pick up my daughter."

She nodded and re-covered the body. "I need to finish prepping the body to send to the mortuary anyway."

"If you figure anything out about the animal that did this, please call me."

She looked at me with a sort of somberness that betrayed her puzzlement. "You'll be the first to know."

* * *

"Bella!" When I got to the hospital I found her sitting on a gurney in the Emergency room hallway.

"I'm fine Charli—dad." She looked up at me, so small and fragile I thought my heart would break but I swallowed that emotion and instead let anger bubble freely over my anxiety. I was about ready to kill the kid that did this. "There's nothing wrong with me."

I ignored her teenage bravado and instead turned to the nearest person I could find wearing scrubs. "Why is there a brace around her neck? I didn't think it was that bad!"

"Sir, it's just a safety precaution. She should be okay."

"Should be?" What the hell was that supposed to mean. Why couldn't these people do their jobs?

"We're just waiting for one of the rooms to open up." As if he spoke it into existence a nurse came around the corner to tell him to go ahead and bring her stretcher into a newly available space. He rolled her gurney into the room next to some kid with a series of superficial cuts on his face.

"Bella, I'm so sorry!" he said. "I thought I was going to kill you. I was going too fast and I hit the ice wrong."

This must have been the kid that almost killed Bella. The kid that was very much short on my tolerance today.

"Don't worry about it you missed me," she said. In spite of everything I was a little proud at how tough she was being.

"How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you were gone."

"I'd like to know that too, Bella," I said.

"Um, Edward pulled me away."

Tyler looked confused. "Who?"

The doors to the room flew open and in walked Doctor Cullen. I'd nearly forgotten the name in all of today's hectic activities but I could never forget that face. His skin was startlingly pale and taut, smiling only with closed lips. He had the face of model and the warmth of a crocodile. "I heard the chief's daughter was here." He nodded at me. "Charlie."

"Doctor Cullen."

"I've got this one here," he said to one of the nursing staff.

"I'm so sorry, Bella." Tyler said again. I closed the curtain between them, more-so out of anger than privacy.

"You know, it would have been a whole lot worse if Edward wasn't there," Bella was rambling to the doctor as he examined her. "He knocked me out of the way."

"Edward?" I said to the doctor. "Your boy?"

Bella got more excited. "Yeah, it was amazing. I mean, he got to me so fast. He was nowhere near me."

"Sounds like you were very lucky," Doctor Cullen seemed mostly disinterested in the details. "Charlie," Looking at me he gestured for me to follow him out into the hall.

"The X-rays look fine. There is no concussion, no fractures, and other than that, she's not hurt. Keep an eye on her though. If she has any pain, plain old Tylenol will do just fine. And bring her back if she experiences any dizziness or double vision."

"That's it?" I asked in disbelief. Surely a near-death experience warranted more thorough treatment.

He smiled tightly but remained firm. "It's always so different when it's your own child."

He ran a hand through pale blonde hair. When he did so the reflection on his watch caught light and for a moment I could have sworn something shimmered near the crook of his neck. I didn't peg Doctor Cullen as a man who liked jewelry and for some reason I was caught spellbound trying to find the source of the twinkling.

Doctor Cullen caught on to my fascination and cleared his throat in an awkward manner. "Charlie, I know it seemed dreadful but trust me Bella is going to be just fine. I looked over her labs meticulously. Aside from being a bit shaken she's not hurt."

Somehow that made me feel better. "Thanks, Doc," I stuck my hand out to shake his hand. He looked at it for a moment before declining my hand. "Germaphobe?"

"Something like that."

"Sorry."

"It's quite Alright." He walked off without hesitating. Hopefully to go work on his people skills.

When I went to get Bella she was standing in a corner with the Cullen boy, rapt in hushed conversation. I interrupted them. "You ready, Bells?"

"Yeah."

I put an arm around her and lead her through the waiting room lobby, filled to capacity with Bella's little school chums, and steered her through the glass doors and out into the parking lot. "Let's go home."

"Why can't I go back to school? I'm fine," she said as I opened the passenger side door of the police car.

"You almost got hit by a van. You need rest and anyway the day's almost over. I'll even pamper you tonight. Whatever you want you can have. As long as it doesn't cost me my first born child."

She sighed, exasperated. "I'm not a child," she muttered.

"No, but you are my child. I'm your father."

"I know that." She crossed her arms and slunk down into her seat.

I started the car and pulled out of the lot. "And what were you and the Cullen kid talking about?"

"...Nothing. He just wanted to make sure I was okay."

"Mm Hmm." Just when I thought raising a teenager couldn't get anymore nerve-racking, now there's a boy in the picture. I wasn't sure how I was going to broach that topic with her so instead I let it slip and tried interrogating her. "So, what happened?"

She sighed again. "I was in the parking lot, standing next to the Chevy when Tyler lost control of his van and almost hit me."

I tried not to wince but it was hard to hear. "You said Edward pushed you out of the way."

"Yeah! He was incredible." She seemed infatuated. Great.

I thought for a moment. "He didn't look hurt." He barely even looked frazzled.

"Yeah, well, he was super fast. He came out of nowhere." It was the most enthusiasm I'd heard in her voice in a long while.

"A hero, huh? Like Spiderman."

She scoffed. "Dad, really. Radioactive spiders?"

"Stranger things have happened." I tried getting more out of her but with each question she seemed to get more agitated and less receptive.

As we were nearing the house a call came over the radio. "Shit." I thought I could go home have a beer, and relax but it looked like the day wasn't over yet. I answered, "Swan."

"Chief?"

"Yeah, Waylon," I said as I pulled into our driveway. "What is it?"

"They found another body."


	2. Murder

**2\. Murder**

"It's not too bad in my opinion." The guy at the impound lot pointed at Bella's truck as we walked up. "The engine, tires, and frame are fine. Looks like it was just a fender bender."

Looking at the damage it was true; from a distance the thing barely looked scratched. Up close near the back left corner, however, was a new dent on the bumper just large enough to cause minor concern. "I need to get that fixed," I said gesturing toward the back bumper.

He crouched down to get a better look. "Yeah," he said. "Good thing it's so old. Replacing parts on it shouldn't run you too much money. Not like the kid with the van."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh yeah, the van that came in with your Chevy is broken up pretty bad. The passenger side has a _huge_ dent in it. That kid's lucky he wasn't on that side of the car, he could've got killed."

 _Killed_? From a little fender-bender like this? "Let me see the van."

"You're not the owner."

"No. But I'm the Chief of Police. Consider it official police business."

"You got me there, Charlie." He stood up and turned me around, pointing to the van parked across from Bella's truck. "It's right there."

My breath caught right in my throat. Tyler's van was wrecked. The passenger side doors were dented in an unnatural shape where it must have impacted. The windows were shattered, the glass probably littering the parking lot at Forks High School. I pulled the flashlight from my utility belt and looked inside the absent windows and got a view of the ripped polyester cushioning that covered the floor. The leather on the seats had split open and the contents had spilled out.

"What the hell?" I turned back to the man. "These two vehicles were in a collision? _With each other_?"

He shrugged, "Hey man I wasn't there, but that's the story they gave the tow trucks. Anyway you know how sturdy these old cars can be."

"And you believe that! It looks like this van got wrapped around a pole. My daughter's truck is barely scratched." There's sturdy and then there's indestructible.

"Like I said I wasn't there. But we got multiple reports from different faculty and students that back up the claims if you're worried about the insurance company trying to challenge it."

That was the farthest thing from my mind. What I wanted to know was how such a large, deep indentation could be made in the side of Tyler's van. From the size, shape, and location of the dent there was no way in hell it had been made by the tiny ding left on the corner of Bella's bumper. And it wasn't made by Bella either since she was perfectly unharmed.

What the hell could it have hit?

"Do you have a tape measure?" I asked him as I clipped my flashlight back to my belt.

"Yeah, hold on." He excused himself for a few moments to the office before coming back with a carefully rolled up plastic tape measure.

He handed it to me and I went about measuring the width of the dent on the side of Tyler's van. Then I measured the distance between the dent and the ground. I did the same with Bella's truck.

The math didn't add up. Even if Bella's truck were strong even to keep its frame after the impact with the van, the distance between the damage and the ground on each vehicle was off by over five inches. If they hit each other like the reports say then the damage to Bella's truck should be far larger than just the end of the bumper. It should extend upward into the bed of the pick-up.

That doesn't even explain the depth of the dent on the van. A collision like this should have left a shallower indention. None of this added up.

I gave the tape measure back just in time for my phone to ring, "This is Chief Swan."

"Hi. Chief Swan this is Doctor Kelly with the Port Angeles Coroner's Office. You asked me to call if I learned anything new about the body."

"Yes, hello. I was meaning to give you a call anyway about the newest body found." I paused for a moment. "It was like the others wasn't it?"

"Yes it was," she was more solemn than the last time we spoke. "The body had the same type of lacerations and bruising as the other bodies. Same puncture wounds. More teeth marks than last time."

She remained quiet for a moment so I went ahead and asked the question, "Animal?"

"Human."

"You're sure?"

"Chief Swan, I'm positive. This isn't an animal attack, this was made to _look_ like an animal attack."

"A serial killer? Jesus."

"There's more."

"Is it worse than news of a serial killer?"

"I didn't have time to go into details when you were here since you had to leave so suddenly, but in light of the newest body it needs to be said. I've discovered the cause of death."

"What is it?"

"At first I assumed it was the blow to the head. Each body's skull was either heavily fractured or shattered. But then I measured the volume of the bodies remaining content and every time, like clockwork, they've been drained of over fifty percent of their fluid content."

"I'm sorry I don't understand."

"Chief Swan, these people are dying from extreme hemorrhaging. I can't find most of the blood." I could hear her voice shaking on over the phone. "I...I've never seen anything like this before."

"Neither have I."

"...And there's more."

" _More_?"

"I took a sample from under one of the victim's fingernails. It usually takes a little bit longer for the results to come back but in these circumstances I thought it better to rush the order."

"Yes."

"There was what appeared to be human skin cells trapped under their fingernails. They didn't match the victim, so it can be assumed it belonged to whoever he fought. The results were...well the skin cells were dead."

"Is that bad?"

"Not really. The top most superficial layers of skin cells on all humans are dead. These, however, were long dead. It's like they got in a fight with a corpse or something. We're seeing if we can match the DNA to anyone in the database, but because of the nature of the tissue samples, they're mostly coming back inconclusive."

"Thank you Doctor. Can you please send a copy of the files on all the victims involved to my office?"

"Of course. I'll fax them to the Forks Police Station immediately."

"Thank you." I hung up and took a few pictures of Bella's truck and the van.

When I got back in the police car a call came over the radio. "Charlie, we got a call about a disturbance of the peace."

"Where?"

"Doesn't sound too bad. Just a fight broke out at Pacific Pizza. Two men are in the parking lot about to come to blows."

"Alright I'm on my way."

I didn't get back to the station until the last rays of daylight peeked over the horizon. It was better that way; I didn't want to break the news to any of my officers until I was certain this was really a serial killer. Most of the day-shift officers had left and the graveyard shift was just starting to trickle in so I went and hid in my office. Someone had left the contents of Doctor Kelly's very thick fax on my desk. I'd grabbed a mug of coffee and copiously added a few tablespoons of the vodka that I kept stashed in the file cabinet.

After a few hefty gulps I started shifting through the stack of paper. She'd sent the medical reports, identification of the victims, crime scene reports, and plenty of pictures.

As of the latest one, there were currently five bodies total. The first body came in two months ago. I pulled out the file. It was of a man named Brent Olson. He worked at the animal control center and was in the woods camping. Apparently his wife told the police that he loved camping and would do so as often as he could. He was found near to the Oxbow campground. When it happened we left it to the department closer to the site of death to handle it but that week, as I remember it, the station couldn't stop talking about it.

I looked at pictures the family had sent into the department. I'd seen him around, though we'd never spoken. Now we never would.

I compared a picture of him with his wife on a porch with a picture taken by the coroner's office. His face was almost unrecognizable with all the bruising and swelling.

The next name was a man named Jermaine Harkins. Retired. Liked to fish. Body found out at Hemp Hill Creek. The pictures of his body looked just like Brent Olson's. One of the pictures was a close-up of Jermaine's neck. There was a series of two parallel puncture wounds dotting his neck in several places. Needle marks? Poison, maybe?

The third body found was that of Doyle Burton. He was found near Undi Lake. He was a tourist from out of state. Like a lot of tourists he'd come all the way out here for the peace and quiet. Knowing he'd found nothing but his death made my stomach turn. I looked again for the strange puncture marks and found them around his collar bone and right beneath his cheek.

The fourth was Wilbert Adams. Another camper. Found out in Bogaciel State Park. He was from Port Angeles and like the other three enjoyed camping and fishing. From the photos I could see more of the strange puncture marks.

This last one I knew. His name was Mitchell Pearson and we had gone to high school together what must have been centuries ago. He'd played basketball and enjoyed mountain climbing with his older brother. As I recalled he'd wanted to move away and become a lawyer. His file listed his occupation as logger. He left behind a wife and two children, only a few years younger than Bella. He was out that day merely going on a hike near Calawah River. His wife said he was scheduled to be home before it was even dark that day. He didn't make it.

I pulled out a notepad and pen and started trying to piece this thing together. Five victims: Brent Olson, Jermaine Harkins, Doyle Burton, Wilbur Adams, and Mitchell Pearson. Each one died while camping, fishing, or hiking in or around the area of the Olympic National Park. The bodies were left mutilated as if mauled by an animal, but teeth and claw prints for any known animal were negative. Furthermore, each body contained a blow to the head from an unidentified object and a series of strange puncture marks contained in the neck and torso area. Skin cells found under the nails of body number four—Wilbur Adams, are inconclusive.

I got up and walked over to the map of Washington State hanging on a wall near the file cabinet. I pulled five red colored push-pins out of an old ashtray and ran my finger up the map.

First body found in Oxbow. I pushed a pin into the area. Next body, Hemp Hill. I put a pin in it. Third body found next to Undi Lake. I pinned that location too. Fourth and fifth bodies found in Bogachiel Park and by Calawah River. I pinned them.

"Shit," The pins lined the map following a clear path from south to north staying near to rivers and lakes. The bastard was headed straight for Forks...if he wasn't here already.

I took another liberal swallow of vodka, sans coffee.

Times of death were scattered. Race and gender seemed coincidental. Besides that the only criteria for getting picked by this monster was to be in the woods alone.

My first course of action was to immediately issue a warning to potential campers. The people of Forks needed to stay the hell out of the woods. I'd get one of the lieutenants to give a statement early tomorrow morning. The news of the mutilations had already spread like wildfire and most assumed them to be animal attacks. I think for now it's better to keep it that way so as not to cause a panic. At least until I could call in an expert. The FBI certainly but probably a profiler too.

I sat back down at my desk and took another drink. Somehow that made the headache better but the dread worse. Doctor Kelly's fax was scattered on the desk and somewhere off to the side was the damage report from Bella's truck.

I flipped through the pictures in my phone, trying to distract myself with the mundanity of haggling with the car insurance company over the damages to the Chevy. Staring down at the pictures in my phone, half drunk, I was still amazed that Bella wasn't hurt in any real way. Was the kid encased in a steel tomb when it happened? Did an angel step in to save her? But no, they'd said that other kid had pushed her out of the way.

Edward Cullen.

It wasn't the face of a kid I'd seen grow up. His family had moved here only two years ago I think. I'd seen them around but as far as I could tell they weren't a social bunch. They mostly stayed to themselves up in the manor of theirs tucked off into the edge of the wilderness. Dr. Cullen and his wife looked a bit younger than me but they had five teenagers. I think I heard someone mention that they were adopted or something.

That had always struck me as odd somehow...

Probably something to do with how difficult is was for my friends Tom and Sally Anderson to conceive. I'd remembered that because at the time Renee had felt bad for them and had sewn her a couple of prayer shawls inspired by whatever hippy shit she'd been into at the time.

Anyway Tom and Sally had ended up having to adopt their son. But that had taken years of paperwork, and psyche evaluations, and meeting with social workers before they were finally given their son Caleb. I guess in Alaska they give out teenagers like consolation prizes because I'd bet my left nut that Dr. Cullen was no more than twenty-five or so. What kind of twenty-five year old couple was into adopting an entire pack of teenagers?

It wasn't like they were fooling anybody about it though. They all looked so different from each other. Except of course for their unnaturally pale skin. I didn't know what that was about, and it was probably rude to say, but it freaked me out. Maybe it was just more Alaska weirdness or is this vodka starting to kick in?

I took another drink.

Either way I was thankful that his kid had been able to save Bella—if he'd stop giving her the goo-goo eyes all the time. She was still a little girl to me. Thinking about her and boys made my ass ache.

Figures she'd be into some clown with a weird hairdo. She had her mother's taste in men...wait a minute.

As the alcohol fully got to my head I lay back in my chair and drifted off. I dreamt of carnage like I've never seen. Bodies piling on bodies and blood pooling at my feet. I saw death like I've never known. I saw Tom and Sally, and Martha, and Bill, and other Bill, and Waylon, and Billy, and Gerry—practically the whole town—screaming and crying in pain. A white snake appeared in the gore and slithered it's way towards me. I tried to run but I was glued in place, tried to scream but only met dead ears. It slinked up my body and stared me in the eyes.

It's mouth opened showing perfectly white fangs, "You're lucky, Charlie," It said.

I stared at it. Stared into his red eyes and saw its pale white skin glimmer under moonlight. It wrapped itself around my neck and began squeezing with all its might. At last it sank its teeth into my neck but I was too weak to cry out. As I fell to my knees I saw Bella and Edward Cullen standing among the corpses. He held Bella in his arms and smiled at me through eyes as red as blood. "You're lucky I was there to save her, Charlie." And with that he leaned down and bit into her neck. To my horror, instead of dying like the others she turned into a snake too and the room was suddenly filled with them.

When I woke up, I was in my office and it was 2 am. My temples pounded and I moaned as I sat upright. No more vodka and coffee specials for me. I gathered up the files, headed home, and crashed in my bed just before the morning sun rose to proclaim the new day.

* * *

I crawled out of bed later to find my cell phone full of unheard messages. Most were the usual but one was from Forks High School.

"Hello, Chief Swan," said the woman on the recording. "I'm calling to let you know that Bella didn't come to classes yesterday."

Oh, that's right. Can't forget the exciting trials of parenthood.

"A student heard a rumor that she and another student might have cut classes and went off to the woods. It's nothing serious, just a courtesy call we give. If she was absent for a legitimate reason, however, please make sure you send a note with her tomorrow. Thank you."

Corpses, serial killers, near-death accidents, and now _skipping_? Was it okay with the world if I just crawled back into bed and never got up again?

After that bit of unpleasantness I got on the phone with the station and made sure they'd got my message to warn citizens of the dangers in the forest. Maybe I should have told them about the murderer, but all I could see was the inevitable panic and the call for answers—answers I didn't have right now.

By the time I was up good I heard the front door closing. "Bella."

"Yeah?"

I staggered my way down the stairs to meet her. She stood there with her backpack slung over one shoulder, her back hunched over a little. "Have you been sick lately, you look a little pale...well, paler than usual."

"Yeah, I'm fine Charlie."

"Excuse me?"

" _Dad_. I'm fine dad." She made to go up the stairs but I grabbed her arm and gently pulled her back. She looked at me, puzzled.

"The school called today. They said you cut class. Were you with that Cullen kid?"

"His name is Edward."

"I don't care what his name is, this is about you ditching school. And the two of you went in the woods? Alone together? What for?"

"Nothing. We were just talking."

"Just talking?" I lost my virginity in those woods. "About what?"

"Stuff!"

"You shouldn't be going in the woods. There have been more animal attacks."

"Yeah, I know." She tried to pull from my grasp and run up the stairs.

"Hey! What the hell is the matter with you?"

"Dad. I'm sorry I ditched, it didn't think it was a big deal."

"This is Edward, isn't it? You never did stuff like this before you started hanging around with him."

"It's not his fault, okay. I shouldn't have skipped school—I just wasn't thinking." She looked at me with a kind of anxious quietness, so I let it go and watched her slouch her way up to her room.

Was this puberty or was the behavior change contributed to bad influence?

Edward was the affluent son of a doctor but that didn't mean he wasn't taking advantage of her naivete. It didn't mean he wasn't a dick either.

To be honest I didn't know that much about him or his family

If she was going to start seeing this idiot, then I wanted to know everything there was to know about Edward Cullen. One way or another.


	3. Forgery

**3\. Forgery**

A few days later I was no closer to tracking the killer but I was closer to getting fired. Instead of worrying about that I opened the electronic folder I had had emailed directly to my personal address. Inside was everything I wanted and needed to know...

About Edward Cullen.

This wasn't on the up and up as technically I didn't have a warrant to seize his school files and Doctor Cullen hadn't given permission because, well, I didn't ask. But would any father blame me for the egregious violation of privacy I was about to commit? I mean, he was dating my daughter for Christ's sake.

Still my guts turned as I eyed the file. Opening the file, I threw away doubts.

...And there was nothing. He had decent attendance and perfect grades. There was no extracurricular activities or anything extraordinary like that but there was no skipping, or suspensions either. It was nothing more than a common public school record courtesy of the state of Alaska. I was relieved, but not quite happy.

Edward Masen Cullen. Born June twentieth in the state of Illinois. Straight 'A' student. Graduated seven years ago—what?

Someone at the school had photocopied a picture of a High School diploma and attached it along with his records. There was Edward, in a candid picture likely snapped for the yearbook. He looked startled, his eyes dulled by the colorless photo and his pale skin just barely over-exposed.

Was this a mistake?

I got on the phone and called the school in Alaska. "Do you remember an Edward Cullen?" I asked of a woman in the school's administration.

"Oh yes. Good kid. Never caused trouble. Had a stellar record too. Got a couple scholarships to college."

"Scholarships? When was this?"

"About eight or ten years ago."

"Eight years?"

"Stayed in town for awhile after graduation then the whole family just picked up and moved on a couple years ago. Haven't had a doctor quite as good as Doctor Cullen since."

"You said he was only at your high school for a couple of years. Can you give me the information of the school he attended before yours?"

"Sure can."

She sent me the transcripts and I poured over them. I called the high school he went to before that and they gave the same story. Edward Masen Cullen. Straight A student. Never any problems. "When did he graduate?"

"Oh...over fifteen years ago."...Holy shit.

Instead I tried a new tactic. I called the junior high school he had allegedly gone to. When I requested information about Edward Cullen, the woman in the administrative office claimed that there were no records of an Edward Cullen ever attending the school.

Forgery? _Why_?

What if...what if this was connected to the murders somehow? It seemed implausible but then none of this made sense. What if Edward—or one of the other Cullens was the serial killer? The more I dug the more it looked like their family was nothing but a lie.

I sent requests for the College degrees of everyone in their creepy family; Edward, the weird one, the bitch, the big one, and the ugly one—hell even doctor and Mrs. Cullen. I wanted to know everything about this family.

In the meantime I needed to find out where this forgery came from and why the Cullens needed it in the first place. That wouldn't be an easy task.

* * *

"You looking for a birth certificate and passport?"

"Yeah. I need to disappear." It had taken me over three hours to drive to Seattle but the place was easy enough to find. The three story buildings were well past the limit of building maintenance—the grey paint along the row of businesses and apartments old and chipped.

He looked at me, his dark eyes sweeping over my plain clothed figure. "What'd you do?"

"Shot a man in Reno."

"Funny."

"Doesn't matter what I did. Or were I'm going. All you need to know is that I need to get out of town fast and J. Jenks, I'm told, is the fastest way to do it."

"J. Jenks costs money. Serious money."

"I've got money."

"How much?"

I thought for a moment. "Fifty thousand."

"That's enough."

"So what do I do?"

"You pay up front then Jenks makes the shit you need."

"So I pick it up from you?"

"Yep."

"Good to know." Without waiting I swung and let my fist collide with the lower end of his jaw.

He stumbled back, hands cupping blood. "What the hell, ma-"

My fist flew again, but connected with his forearm. He was ready this time. He backed up and put his fists up between us. I swung again, hitting soft flesh. He groaned but stayed up and pushed me back. Something hard hit me across the cheek. I reached forward, grasped his arm, and pulled. The weight of his body came barreling into my chest. I held firm. As he struggled against my grip I let my blows do the talking. After about nine hits to the head my fist was bloody and his energy was spent.

"You listen to me you son of a bitch," I said. "You're going to tell me where Jenks is."

"I'll die first!"

"If you insist." I un-holstered my gun; the weight heavier in my grip than I'd ever felt it.

His squirming stopped when he felt the barrel under his chin. "Hey man! Come on! Let's talk!"

"Yeah, let's talk! Who and where is J. Jenks?"

"He's my employer okay!"

"No shit."

"Okay, okay! His name is Jason Scott. He has an office, I know the address."

"Thanks. Was that so hard?" The knot in my stomach loosened it's grip on my intestine and a cool breeze washed over me as the sweat that dripped down my temples finally cooled on my flushed skin.

"Man, fuck you!"

"Brave words." I pushed him back out of my grip. I kept my gun trained on him as he wiped the blood from his face and straightened his designer clothes. "Give me your phone."

"No way! This was expensive."

I sighed. "Don't make me say 'please'."

He eyed me for a moment, gauging my threat before finally pulling out his cell phone and laying it cautiously into my outstretched hand.

I put it in my back pocket. "Why do you want J?" He said with eyes wide with irritation.

"There's a lot of bullshit happening in my town. I'm tired of bullshit. I need to know what kind of monsters live up the street."

"Jenks doesn't have anything to do with that bullshit."

"Jenks _deals_ in bullshit."

He paused again, this time his face strained with concentration. "You with Kubarev?"

"No. I'm not with Kubarev. I'm not with anyone. I'm working alone."

That seemed to satisfy something in him as he relaxed a bit, though his eyes were still trained on my gun. "Give me his address."

"Alright fine. But you didn't hear it from me."

* * *

"Mr. Scott will be with you in a moment." The receptionist behind the polished desk looked over and smiled with reassurance. "Don't be so nervous. Jason is an excellent lawyer. Whatever it is that's bothering you, he can fix."

I'm sure he could. "Thanks." My hands cupped a mug of some over-seasoned, over-priced coffee; courtesy of the receptionist. I let my palms numb from the heat. The pain focused me but couldn't fully pull my mind away from what I'd done.

The beige office was warm but dreary, mucus green accents did nothing to lift dower moods—and the fish tank embedded in the wall was nothing but a lavish show of wealth.

The phone on the receptionist's desk came alive and a tense voice spoke over the quiet. "April send in Mr. Smith."

"Yes sir." The receptionist came around her desk and led me down a hallway. As we walked I watched the sway of her blonde hair; pulled back into a neat ponytail.

"She's pretty but slow. Jason Scott." Jenks held out his hand, his fingers pudgy and sweaty. I shook his hand. I could see just above his slightly balding head as he took a seat behind his desk, motioning for me to take the seat opposite.

I sat down in the large tailored chair that faced his expensive wooden desk. I wonder if he bought all this with the blood money he made selling fake identities to criminals?

"You're lucky my three o clock cancelled. It's usually more difficult to squeeze in walk-ins. What can I do for you? Divorce? Lawsuit? Counsel?" His eyes raked over my old collared plaid shirt and tan coat—no designer label to be seen. "I should warn I am good at my job, but I'm also expensive."

I would've given him the same treatment I gave his friend, but this man was smarter than the average idiot and if I wasn't careful I'd find myself on the opposite end of the law. "Actually I'm here about some forgeries."

His brows knit. "My...associate didn't schedule you."

"Your associate didn't send me."

"Then we have nothing to discuss."

"I figured you'd say something like that, but I'll tell you what. I won't turn you in to the Seattle PD if you tell me what I want to know."

"I'd like you to leave my office. _Now_." His tone was steady but his eyes betrayed his anxiety. I could break him.

"Sure. I guess you're not interested in knowing how I found you, then. It's a great little tale of how an old school buddy of mine works for the FBI and how they've been looking for whoever's been supplying the Olympic Peninsula with fraudulent documents. And just how close they are to busting you—but anyway that's in the past. Things really get good in ACT two when the pissed off Seattle Police Department figures out who has been selling forged documents to known gang members. You're a lawyer, right? What's the minimum amount of time you'll get locked in a federal prison for a forgery felony?"

"You have nothing."

"You married, Mr. Scott—if that's even who you are, doesn't matter they'll track whoever's name is on the lease for this office. Got a wife even prettier than your secretary? Couple kids? Do you think she'll divorce you when she realizes she's married to a criminal that helps murderers and tax frauds escape the law? Better question, are you going to be able to afford a lawyer after she takes half of everything you own—well, whatever assets aren't frozen of course."

He was quiet for a moment, staring at me with eyes filled with a mixture of caution and abhorrence. "What are you proposing, Mr. Smith?"

"I already tipped you off to the shit about to the fan, but I'll walk away too. Pretend like I've never heard the name J. Jenks _or_ Jason Scott. All I need to know is everything youknow about the Cullens."

His face blanched over and beads of sweat formed on his forehead. "My clients have a certain expectation of anonymity. That's what they pay for."

"I bet when they arrest you it'll make front page news for weeks. You know how the people love a good bust."

"That'll ruin me," He leaned back in his seat, his best attempt to feign confidence. "Look, I don't know anything about the Cullens."

"Who were they before they came to you?"

"I don't know. They've been clients of my mentor for fifteen years prior to me taking over the business. And I've worked with them personally for another fifteen years."

"That's thirty years." Doctor Cullen couldn't possibly be that old. "When was the last time you were in contact?"

"Couple years ago. They got the usual. Birth certificates, I.D.s, school records, employment records, adoption records—"

"Adoption records? You forge those too, huh? Where did they get the kids, then?"

He hesitated. "I never knew the _kids_ when they _were_ kids."

"What?"

"My contact with that family is Jasper Cullen. I've been doing business with him for fifteen years now."

"Jasper Cullen is seventeen according to your forgeries. Fifteen years ago he would have been two years old."

"Look, I don't know what exactly they are...all I know is Jasper Cullen hasn't aged a day in thirty years."

"Like they're immortal? That's impossible."

"Before I met them I thought that too. But now..."

"But now?"

"I don't know what they are, but they're not human."

"Bullshit."

"I'm being straight. No bullshit. No run around. No double talk. Those people are _not_...people."

"What are they then?"

"I don't know. But they scare the hell out of me."

We both sat quiet, every second more torturous than the last until I said, "Why do you do it then? Why do you work with them if you're so afraid of them?"

"They pay good."

I scoffed; a bitter sound that echoed off dense cream walls. "Money talks."

"Bullshit walks."

"Jenks, I'd like to stay in contact with you."

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"I'll be honest, I wasn't asking."

He nodded. "Don't tell the Cullens I snitched. You don't know what they're capable of."

"Deal."


	4. Monsters

**4\. Monsters**

I was at a dead end. There was no police database where I could decipher what the Cullens were. If Jenks was right, then the Cullens hadn't aged for at least thirty years.

Time was running out and soon I would have to make the call on what to do about the serial killer. If one of the Cullens was connected, and it was looking more likely with every lie I uncovered, then I needed to know what I was up against.

It was crazy…but I didn't have anything else to go on.

So like some information starved rookie I turned to the internet for help. My first search was for immortal creatures. That turned up a barrage of fairy tale creatures like angels, gods, and something called fae.

I did a brief look around for 'fae' but apparently that was what the kids called fairies these days. The Cullens didn't match the description of Tinkerbell so I decided to refine my search.

I thought about what I knew about the Cullens. Immortal creatures...pale skin...changing eye color...never aging…

When I pressed enter the first ten links were nothing but academic journals from scientists trying to extend life but the fifth link was different.

 _Vampires._

It was absurd, but I clicked on the link and was shown some cheap blog dedicated to tracking vampires A to Z. There were descriptions of vampires through the ages-through cultures even. Ones from Africa like Ishologu, Obayifo, Ramanga, and something called a Sasabonsam. There were legends from Asia too. Polong, Algul, and Mandurugo. The European Strigoi, Shtriga, Mullo, and Abhartach.

Vampire legends from this hemisphere were bountiful. Fifollet, Skadegamutc, Windigo, and Chihuateteo. None of them were really all that similar to each other except for the common traits of drinking blood or outright eating human flesh. Other than that the myths were varied between tragic dead women, non-human creatures who lured humans to their deaths, or humans who brought it on themselves by committing some cultural crime. Most of them weren't vampires like I knew them.

However, there were some commonalities here and there that linked together. Like being the living dead, immortality, super strength and even pale skin was mentioned once or twice.

This was stupid. I closed out the internet just in time for my phone to ring. "Swan."

"Chief," It was the voice of one of the other officers.

"Yeah, I took off today Greg. Carl's in charge, you know that."

"It's important." His voice was strained and low. I could just barely hear the hint of sadness in his tone.

"What is it?"

"It's Waylon. He-he uh...well he's dead sir."

A cold sweat broke out on my forehead. "Dead! How?"

"An animal got him. Whatever's out there killing campers it got Waylon."

"We put out a warning. Why didn't he stay out of the woods?"

"Wasn't in the woods. Was at the dock. He was just cleaning his boat, you know, fixing it up a bit. He had no intention of going in the woods. Anyway, Joe was the one that found him."

"Where's the body?"

"What?"

"Where's the body, Greg?"

"They sent it to the coroner's office."

"I'll call you back."

"Chief-"

I hung up and dialed the coroner. Once I got through, Dr. Kelly was put on the line. "Charlie, it's another one."

"I heard. Same as the others?"

"Yeah."

"Doc do me a favor. When you examine the body, pay special attention to the puncture marks. Tell me if they're over major arteries.

"As a matter of fact, now that you mention it it is common for the puncture marks to line up almost perfectly over quite a few arteries."

"I'll let you know if it's the same with Mr. Forge's body though I suspect it is."

That's what I thought. "I need to go but keep me posted."

"Charlie!"

"Yeah?"

"You know don't you?" Her voice shook with fear. "You know what this thing is."

"Doc...I have to go, but if I confirm my suspicions I will definitely tell you what's happening."

"I'll accept anything at this point."

"Alright."

I hung up with Doctor Kelly just in time to hear the door closing downstairs. I put my phone away and walked downstairs to greet her. "Bella, I've been meaning to talk to you—" But my breath caught in my throat when I saw her.

She stood there by the table, hunching slightly, her hair stringy and tangled. As she reached for an apple, her bony hand trembled. Her pale skin was almost translucent in the glow of our kitchen light. Her eyes were hollowed like she'd lived one thousand hard years and her slightly parted lips were dry and split like dry-rotted leather.

I ran to her with arms open to cradle her against me. "Bella! Are you sick? What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, dad." She placed the apple back on the table and glowered at me from behind sunken mud colored eyes.

I placed the back of my hand to her forehead, "This isn't ' _nothing_ ', you look awful-here sit down."

As I tried to lead her to the couch she pulled out of my grip and turned hateful eyes my way. "Dad, I said I'm fine."

"Bella, you're not fine. You look like you're going into liver failure."

She tried to pull away again. "I said I'm fine, Charlie!"

"Hey! Call me ' _dad_ '. You can't talk to me like I'm one of your little friends. I'm your father."

"Now you want to be my father? Where were _you_ the last seventeen years?"

"Bella!" Something was wrong with her. Something beyond just the physical. "Why would you say something like that? You know I love you."

"Do you?" Her arms crossed over her chest and she tried to exert independence but the blood didn't reach her cheeks.

"You never used to talk like this. This is Cullen isn't it?"

"Edward had nothing to do with it-"

"Horseshit." I took a step toward her but she pulled back out of my reach. "You were an angel until that kid came along."

"I was _nothing_ before he came along!"

"Don't call yourself nothing!"

"That's what I was! I was just a plain, boring, ordinary girl before Edward! _He makes me special_!"

"Bella, look at yourself. You used to be funny and smart and kind-hearted. Now you're distant, self-involved, and you're self esteem is in the trash! He makes you hate _you_."

"He's better than me, dad. In every possible way." she wrapped her arms around her shoulders, desolate and desperate. "I'm lucky he loves me at all."

"Love? You've known this asshole for a couple of months. You have no idea what real love is."

"Like you can talk! Mom walked out on you and you haven't even looked at anyone since. You just want me to be isolated and lonely like you are! You just want me to be some emotionally stifled mountain hermit just like you-well guess what, I'm not you. Edward-his entire family, is better than you could ever dream of being!"

"I don't have time for this. Just go to your room. You're grounded."

She screamed at me, "I hate it here! God, I want out!"

"If you want to go back to live with your mother that's fine. I'll get you a plane ticket to Florida in a couple of days."

"No." She shook her head. ""Just let me go, Charlie. It didn't work out, okay? I really, really _hate_ Forks!"

"And what about Edward? I thought you liked him?"

"I do like him — that's the problem. I can't do this anymore!"

"Then don't see him! Don't call him, don't talk to him."

"I can't do that, Charlie."

" _Why?"_

"Because he's everywhere." Her voice grew shaky. "I see him at school. I see him around town. He was in Port Angeles, you know?"

"When you went shopping with your friends?"

"Yeah. He showed up. Convinced them to let him take me to dinner alone, to drive me home. I see him in my dreams. I can hear him calling to me, even right now."

Her eyes glazed over and she looked right through me. "Bella, you need to stay away from the Cullens."

But she just shook her head. "There is no escape, dad. I can't live without him anymore. He's everything to me."

"You have to fight it, Bella."

"I can't. The Cullens aren't human. There...something else."

"I know."

Tears pooled in her eyes and slid down her pale cheeks. "I don't know what to do."

I wrapped my arms around her and held her shaking body still. "Just go upstairs and rest. I'll be the one dealing with the Cullens from here on out.."

I watched her drag herself up the stairs and disappear into the second floor.

Bella would need a doctor-a real one and fast. But the hospital was Carlisle's domain. And the school was Edwards. The only thing that surprised me was that they hadn't had Emmett join the police force to further extend their disgusting reach. They had to be stopped.

If the Cullens were some kind of blood sucking immortal creatures then it was them who were responsible for all of the murders-no question about it. But vampires weren't real, and every part of me knew that to be the absolute truth.

Except for one insignificant thought that nagged at my brain…

How _did_ Bella survive the car accident?

By all accounts Edward Cullen had pushed her out of the way, but there hadn't been a scratch on him, and the dent in the Chevy was shallow compared to what happened to Tyler's van. What if Edward stepped in between Bella and the van? I'd thought that it didn't hit anyone because no one was hurt but if the Cullens really are vampires then...

Maybe it was his impenetrable body that had made that dent.

But why? Why save Bella? What would bloodthirsty creatures of the undead want with my daughter? Why protect some kid they didn't know?

I walked back upstairs and knocked on Bella's bedroom door. "Bella, it's dad. Can I come in?"

I didn't hear a sound from the other side of the door so I opened it slowly. She was lying there on her bed as still as a corpse. I rushed over to her but breathed a sigh of relief when I realized she was alive only in a deep sleep.

I watched her. Her hands were folded carefully over her stomach and her dark was sprawled around her face and shoulders like a funeral shroud. When my hand touched her forehead she didn't respond. Her skin was clammy and fevered.

As I moved her hair from around her face and neck I saw two puncture wounds nestled at the base of her neck. A gasp caught in my throat and I steadied myself by sitting on the edge of the bed. I held my head in my hands as I willed myself to calm down. This was really happening. She was dying right before my eyes.

I got on the internet and looked up ways to kill a vampire. After fifteen minutes of searching I found a dubious website that boasted of various ways to harm something called _Cold Ones_. Let's see…

" _To kill a vampire, one must first understand that they are indeed killable and that it is possible for a human to do. Next you must understand their strengths and weaknesses. Vampires possess speeds about three to five times faster than a human depending on the vampire. As such, in a face off never take your eyes off of your kill. Vampires are also much stronger than humans, including the amount of force they are able to take before they can be damaged. It is therefore unwise to try to engage a vampire with bare hands as human fists will not do much damage. Instead, weapons are recommended. Weapons that can hurt vampires include ordinary_ bullets _or any other high powered blows, but be warned that they will only_ stun _the creature. To_ kill _, a wooden stake to the heart, decapitation, and fire will do the trick. Holy water is_ unpredictable _. In practice it has only been able to temporarily maim vampires and the potentness depends on whoever has blessed the water and their level of power. Use with caution._

 _They also seem to have the ability to mind control their victims by biting them._

 _As for the sunlight issue, the creatures are immune. However the rays from the sun seem to make their skin glow making them easier to tell apart from ordinary humans."_

I rubbed my eyes against the glare from the screen before closing them. This was crazy no doubt about that. But even though my brain was telling me to run, my gut was busy thinking about loading my pistol and paying a visit to Doctor Cullen.

And what exactly would I say when I got there? Doctor Cullen are you a vampire? Better question, are you and your vampire family the ones eating and killing the humans around here?

I'd sound like a fool making those kinds of statements out loud.

But I didn't see any other choice so I loaded my gun, checked on Bella, and dug through my camping gear and pulled out one of the military grade wooden tent stakes.

My God, I hope the internet is right about this.


	5. Confrontation

5\. Confrontation

Nestled in the deep woods not even a mile from the Calawah river sat Carlisle Cullen's isolated three story manor. It was an ugly rectangular thing that perched on the side of the incline like a giant pretentious art piece. Expensive, overindulgent, and bizarre.

The outside was more glass than wall, but they'd tinted it black so I couldn't make out what was going on inside. All the worse, a thick fog hung low over the forest floor dyeing the world a murky grey that made it hard to peer through the trees at my surroundings. Not exactly the best weather for a battle...if it even came to that.

I sat in the police car with my hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly my palms were numbing. The gun at my right side dug into my hip but that was normal. It was the wooden stake I'd tucked into my waistband that caused the sharp pain in my side and the knot in my gut.

I put my hand on the door handle with every intention of getting out but I felt frozen in place. I took deep breaths, a nerve steadying technique I hadn't used since the academy. I didn't want to do this. I wanted to drive home and pretend I didn't know anything about the Cullens. But I had to. For Bella.

By the time I'd gathered my courage and gotten out of the car I could just make out the silhouette of a man walking down the front steps of the house. I put my hand close to my gun but a laugh cut through the thick haze and sent a chill through me.

"There's hardly any need for that," said a voice through the fog. " _Hardly_."

"Doctor Cullen."

"Chief Swan." His voice was calm but curious as he stopped in front of me, his posture in the defensive but his hands shoved lazily in the pockets of his tailored slacks. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"This isn't a social call," I tried to keep my voice steady and authoritative, but the way he stared at me unblinking almost crushed my resolve. I could feel the hair on the back of my neck stand and the sweat begin beading at my brow.

If this thing in front of me was a vampire, he must have been powerful. And if he was half as strong as the strength alluded from his mere presence, then Jenks had been right to be scared.

"Then what type of call is it Charlie?" His voice dipped a little, not weary or afraid but more daring.

"It's about you and your family."

"Oh?"

"You and your family moved here two years ago, correct?"

"Yes. From Alaska."

"I have reason to believe that information about you and your family is false."

He stared for a moment, probably contemplating just how much I knew. All the while my right hand itched in anticipation for the slightest sign he would attack.

"What are you saying exactly, Charlie?"

"I'm saying that the story you tell to the people around here is a lie."

His hands came out of his pockets. Empty. "What makes you say that?"

"I ran a background check on you and your family. There are no records of your children ever attending the middle schools that are on file at Forks High School. There's no record of any of the children being adopted anywhere in the country. Nor is there records of any of you being born in the time and place you say you were."

"And how did you come about this information?"

"Police business."

"Ah, we're under investigation by the Forks Police Department then?"

When I didn't answer right away he arched one of his perfect blonde eyebrows and said, "I see, we're under investigation by you personally. May I ask, on what grounds?"

"On the grounds that I think you're responsible for the murders happening in these woods."

"Murder? The police claimed it was merely an animal attack."

"You _know_ that it wasn't"

"I see. This is an unauthorized investigation perpetrated by a rogue cop who violated my family's privacy without a warrant because he has a vendetta against my son for dating his daughter. You have no proof, no witnesses, no probable cause, only some fanatical idea about murders that are not even on public record. Not to be rude but if you continue this illegal breach of protocol I _will_ call my lawyer."

"You know an awful lot about law."

"You'd be surprised how well versed I am when it comes to legal matters."

He turned around to walk back toward his home, certain that I was scared enough to leave well enough alone.

My voice was unsteady as I said, "I know what you are."

He stopped in his tracks and looked back over one broad shoulder. "And what is that, exactly?" He turned back to me, his face still a cool white mask through the fog, but his eyes were sharper and more focused.

"You're...not human. Your son got hit by that van. I saw the indention, it didn't come from my daughter's car. The dead campers are all marked with puncture wounds and scratch marks-neither come from any animal the coroner has ever seen. Either Bigfoot became a psychopath or..."

"Or what?" His voice was strangely forceful and I almost stumbled back under it's sudden hostility. My hand itched again, ready to draw. "Say it Charlie. Say the word."

As if compelled I obliged. "Vampire."

"You're far more astute than you look, Chief." Through the fog I could see a wide grin playing at the corners of his mouth. When his lips parted his fangs peeked out at me. I almost fell over from light-headedness but I kept my ground and placed a hand over my pistol.

"There's no need for violence," he said with a sly laugh that rose up over the forest. "I have no intention of hurting you."

"Tell that to Brent Olson, Jermaine Harkins, Doyle Burton, Wilbert Adams, Mitchell Pearson, or Waylon Forge."

" _Who_?"

Rage boiled over in my gut. "All the people you've killed! All the people whose loved ones had to go to the morgue and identify their mutilated bodies! All the lives you've destroyed!"

"The campers? That wasn't us." He shrugged.

"Don't tell me it wasn't you! There are bodies littered from here to _Seattle_. All of them torn apart. All of them marked with fangs."

"It's probably just another coven of vampires."

"What?"

"You didn't think we were the only ones did you?" His chuckle was condescending. "Maybe you are as dumb as you look."

I drew my gun, my hand conforming firmly to the familiar grip but by the time I blinked Carlisle Cullen had closed the gap between us and was standing before me with his chest pushed up against the barrel-his golden eyes staring through me but still as calm as ever.

"Are you planning on shooting me Charlie?" He said in that obnoxious way of his. "Go ahead. Though I warn you, when I get up-and I will-your life will be forfeit."

I swallowed the fear in my throat as he smiled again. He was amused by me.

I lowered the gun slowly, but kept my hands firm. "Very good," he said. "My family and I choose not to harm humans."

"Bullshit."

"There's that glimpse of intelligence again." He gave me another fang-baring grin. "Fine then, my family and I keep a low profile when it comes to harming humans."

"Like eating my daughter?"

"Edward is very fond of her blood but has no desire to kill her just yet."

"And the rest of your _family_?"

"Two vampire can't feed from the same human at the same time. They'd either die from the toxic mix of venom from each vampire or go mad from being _compelled_ by each vampire."

"And you think I'll just let him keep using her as a personal drinking fountain?"

"I don't think you can stop him. You're daughter is already under Edward's compulsion and compulsion can only be broken if the vampire is dies or there has been sufficient time away from the vampire's control." He backed away from me slightly but kept his distance within arms reach in case I tried anything. "Bella is special to us, Charlie."

"What's the hell does that mean?"

"She's different from any other human I've ever seen. She has power-somewhere, somehow. We _need_ her."

"You can't have her."

"That wasn't a request."

"You'll have to kill me first."

"Don't temp me," he said with a surprising amount of dispassion. "I pride myself on self-control. Anyway that won't be necessary. She already belongs to us."

"No she doesn't. She's still at home every night safe in her bed. I'm going to keep it that way."

"Safe in her bed? Are you so sure?" The smile he gave me was so self-satisfied that I wanted to punch him in his cold dead face. A thought occurred to me then.

"Where is Edward?"

"With the rest of my family. I suspect your daughter's with them too. You probably should have watched her more carefully."

Before I could react he had run off into the woods, disappearing into the soft glow of twilight. "Fuck!"

I'd fallen for his ploy. The Cullen patriarch had been nothing but a diversion while the others had taken Bella. I ran back to the police car and started the engine.

* * *

When I pulled into the driveway Bella's truck was missing and the only sign that it had been there at all was a light oil stain on the concrete. I ran inside to a house so still it felt like time had stopped. "Bella!"

There was no haughty answer or cursing my name-I didn't even hear any movement. I ran upstairs and into her bedroom. The room had not changed in the hour I was gone. Her dresser and closet were still full of clothes and it looked like she had left with nothing but the clothes on her back.

"Shit!"

I ran downstairs again and got halfway out of the door before I realized I needed a picture of her. Most of mine were from when she was a little squirt with chubby cheeks and short soft arms. Maybe she had a picture of herself that was more recent.

I ran back upstairs. When I pushed the door open I was affronted and confused. There on top of her bed was a man. He was sitting among a pile of dirty laundry that hadn't been there moments before. He had a handful of it pressed gently into his face, his eyes closed as if he were in deep concentration. He inhaled deeply, letting a soft moan escape his lips as he exhaled.

"What the hell!" I heard myself say.

When he heard my voice his dark red eyes snapped open and a slow smile spread across his face.

I pulled my gun from the holster and aimed for the man but he had disappeared. The room grew quiet as I looked around, gun first. The sound of aging wood creaked in the corner. I turned...but nothing was there. I walked out of Bella's room with my gun at attention.

The hallway was clear, but the light had dimmed slightly as the darkness of night creep further over the sky. I heard another sound from behind and turned to fire, but it was nothing but my imagination it seemed. I was about to give up and leave when I felt the flush of a cool breeze over the back of my neck.

"The snack's daddy," his deep smooth voice echoed in my ear. "Cute."

I felt his arm hit me in the middle of my back and out of nowhere I was flying across the hall. I landed back first at the top of the stairs looking up just in time to see him lunging at me. I flung myself down the stairs before his fist could collide with the floor where I had lay seconds before.

When I landed on the first floor I didn't take the time to get my bearings but instead aimed at the top of the staircase and fired three times. Two bullets struck him, he fell back against their power and gripped his shattered jaw. He looked at me with rage but before he got up I fired again hitting him once in the chest and twice in the face.

One of the bullets struck his right eye and his hands reached up to cup his blood filled socket. His scream shook the house and his curses almost knocked me over but I managed to get up and run out of there while he was writhing in pain..

I flung myself into the driver's seat of the police cruiser without another thought and sped away from the house. I got on the radio. "Doris."

"Yeah, Charlie?"

"I need you to issue an Amber Alert."

"Who's missing?"

"Bella."

There was a pause. She had known Bella. She'd come to the hospital to congratulate Renee and me when Bella was born-had watched her grow. I snapped her out of it. "Doris!"

"I'm contacting the department as we speak. What was she wearing?"

"A dark green top with branch patterns. It might have a hood on it but I'm not sure. She's got on a pair of blue jeans and a pair of brown boots."

"Got it."

"They're in the Chevy. It's a 1963 Stepside C-10. It's red but the paint is fading. It's registered in my name. I want every officer from here to Florida on the look-out. I'm going to be out of range of the radio so if you get word contact me on my cell phone."

"Okay Charlie."


	6. Missing

**6\. Missing**

I'd driven madly for days. At first I had nowhere to go, so I circled around Forks. When I realized they had left I chose to drive to both Port Angeles and then Seattle. By the time I had gotten to Seattle Doris had called.

"They've spotted the Chevy going south, Charlie."

They were taking her across state lines, God knows what for. All I knew, was that wherever they dragged Bella I would go too. And if a single hair was harmed on her head they would have to kill me before I killed every last one of them.

By the time I'd crossed over into Oregon I got another call. "They spotted the truck at a gas station in Nevada. They seem to be headed further south."

An entire state away. What was their angle? Why had they taken her hostage in the first place? Why were they keeping her alive? Carlisle-wherever that smirking asshole was-had said she was special. Why?

I drove on, weary and tired but motivated. No news came in for another eight hours. Eventually as I hit Nevada Doris called again. "Someone spotted the truck and a girl of Bella's description in Arizona."

"Phoenix?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

"Never mind that. What else do you have?"

"They say they saw her near a hotel. She checked in with a girl and a man. The girl was described as short with a dark black pixie cut. The man was described as tall and blonde. About six feet something."

Tall and blonde wasn't enough to tell the difference between the Cullen men but the description of the girl was almost certainly Alice Cullen.

"Which hotel?"

"Looking into it. The witness can't seem to remember but they're on the lookout for any credit cards used in the Cullen's name."

It was unlikely that they were stupid enough to use their own credit cards and Jenks had made them countless identities. "I know where to get the information. Hold on."

I hung up with Doris and pulled the car over next to the empty highway. "Jenks. It's Charlie," I said after I'd dialed his number.

"What is it, Chief? I'm with my family." Somewhere behind him I could hear little girl's laughter and play.

"Kiss them goodnight. The Cullens have my daughter."

The line was silent. "What do you want me to do about it?"

"I want you to mail the name and social of every Cullen to my phone."

"Charlie…"

I snapped. "Goddamn it! Just give me the names!" I hadn't let myself fall apart until now, but not knowing where Bella was, sitting in this car, coming across dead end after dead end...made me feel claustrophobic somehow. "Just...please."

"They'll kill me."

"They won't know you told. I'll make sure of it." My voice started cracking. "Please! They've got Bella. This isn't a cop asking an informant or questioning a criminal. Father to father-they have my little girl!"

The line remained silent. The only thing heard was my own desperate breathing and the sound of his daughters giggling. Please, if there is a God..."I'm sending the information."

"Thank you."

He hung up without another word and so I sat by the side of the highway, holding my breath and praying he'd keep his promise. In under twenty minutes he'd sent the names-all of them. Every name they had ever been known by or conducted business under. He'd left his name unattached so I was free to forward the list to the police.

I called the department right after. "Doris?"

"We got the names, Charlie."

"Pay close attention to credit cards, license plates, and airline tickets."

"Okay."

It would take a while for her to get back to me, and I wasn't about to just stall here on the side of the road so I moved on, speeding my way through the rest of Nevada and stopping only for piss breaks until I was finally in Phoenix. Eventually Doris called back.

"Charlie, we got a couple of hits."

"Yeah?"

"There's a hotel room downtown that was paid for with a credit card in the name of Jasper Whitlock. And a flight is due to land soon at the airport with a passenger on board who goes by the name Edward Mason."

That was them. "Give me the address for the airport."

* * *

The airport drop-off was crowded by an ocean of weary travelers. Some were looking for their cabs or shuttles and some were just pulling up, and hauling their luggage from out of their family's cars.

Then I saw Edward.

He was standing in a small enclave just outside the doors, a grim frown doing nothing to hurt his pretty-boy face. He looked around, his eyes dashing madly through the crowd. Carlisle was there girl-Alice, stood facing him with the tall blonde on her side. The name on the hotel room was Jasper. Jenks' contact.

There was another one there. A big one.

His back was to me, his shoulders straight and rigid and his dark hair trimmed short. The five of them huddled there, talking in hushed voices. Looking around I didn't see Bella. I moved my way through the crowd, weaving my way past exhausted travelers and bumping shoulders with others but I didn't care to apologize.

When I was close enough I ducked back behind a support column and strained to hear over the chatter around me.

"Where is she?"

"She wasn't in the bathroom."

"Where would she go?"

"I had a vision. I think she's going to the ballet studio but I'm not sure where that is-Edward…"

"We'll find her," Carlisle's voice cut through the tension. "She's the one."

"Wherever she is we have to hurry-" Edward paused and inhaled so deeply I thought he would choke on the oxygen but instead he opened his dark red eyes and smiled from behind a shiny fanged grin. "Charlie Swan."

They didn't look my way, they only gestured slightly toward my direction. I tensed up, my hand ready to pull the pistol on my hip but my mind resisting and trying to reconcile the damage firing into such a large crowd of people would cause. I wouldn't draw attention to us here in this crowd, and from the way Edward's lips curled upward at my hesitation he knew I wouldn't attack.

"Charlie," Edward said so slight I could barely hear. "It's such a pleasure to finally meet you."

He and his phony platitudes could go straight to hell. "Where's Bella?" I said as I came from behind the column.

He frowned. "From your tone I can tell that you aren't one for pleasantries. That's a pity. This generation's lack of decorum leaves me tired and, much to my displeasure, impatient."

"Jesus, you gotta be a vampire and an asshole."

"I prefer to think of myself as of a higher purpose than name calling."

"Yeah, all narcissists do." I didn't drive all this way to trade barbs with this idiot. "Where is Bella?"

"I'm afraid we don't know," he said. "She ran away from us."

"Good."

"Not good," Alice's small frame came from behind her brothers. "She's being hunted by a vampire."

"What?" I looked between the Cullens, their faces were stone-still. "I thought you were hunting her."

"Charlie we've discussed this," said Carlisle with just the right amount of sarcasm to make me long to kill him. "We have no intention of harming Bella. She's important to us-probably even more to us than you."

"Impossible," I said. "I'm the only one here who really loves her."

Carlisle shrugged. "Be that as it may, the person hunting Bella is probably the vampire who's been eating the campers."

The blood rushed from my head. The Cullens disappeared and in their place was the images of all those men reduced to nothing but bone, muscle, and organs. I thought of Bella and her small, frail body. I thought about how small she was that first day at the hospital when I cradled her in my arms, the way her tiny body had curled up, the way it felt to feel like someone on this earth needed my protection-not for a job, not out of obligation, but out of love.

She wouldn't stand a chance against a vampire.

Before long I was conscious of the Cullens huddling around Alice. Her eyes had glossed over as she stood arrow straight in the center of the other Cullens. She trembled slightly, her lips moving wordlessly as she stared off into nowhere.

"What the hell's the matter with her?"

"Be silent." Carlisle's tone was full of an unusual malice. "What's happened?"

"Something's changed," Alice swallowed and looked at me. "It's because he's here."

They all turned their cold dead eyes towards me. "What's going on?"

"Charlie," Carlisle's face was a grim mask. Sometimes under his cool gaze it was hard to remember that he wasn't human but a monster. "The vampires who have been terrorizing Forks visited us."

"Vampires?" Plural.

He nodded. "Yes, there is more than one-three actually. They came upon my family while Bella was with us. Anyway one of them is...enamored with Bella."

"Is that vampire speak for 'he wants to eat her'?"

"In so many crass words, yes. We know he's here in Phoenix. And we know, or rather think we know, where he's going." He stepped forward a bit, his compassion shining through golden eyes but not quite making their intended impact. "We don't know where Bella is, but she and James are destined to cross paths here."

Alice finished his thought, "She would have been certainly dead, but something changed...there's a chance now-but we need to hurry."

"Charlie," Carlisle spoke carefully. "We think she's on her way to a ballet studio."

Ballet? Bella used to dance Ballet? I never got to see her-she quit pretty quickly, but I remember the pictures Renee used to send me. Bella in her little tights, smiling at the camera. Me calling, hearing her voice high with excitement. Renee complaining afterward that I owed her half of the cost of the lessons-even if I had no say in what her extracurricular were.

I could hear her voice, some parts condemning me for not yet sending my half of the class fees yet other parts blabbing about Bella. She loves it. She's bad at it. Her dance instructor hates me. The place is really out of the way. On that street….what was it? Oh I remember. Fifty-eighth street and Cactus.

"I've gotten what we need," Edward's voice cut through my memories like warped glass. "I know where she's gone."

"Excellent." Said Carlisle.

Before I could get my mental bearings, the Cullens had strolled without sound or much fuss out of sight. The people around us didn't notice. I stood alone outside the airport, a fog seemingly lifted from over my eyes.

They'd vanished like mist in the sun and I had nothing to show for the interaction except a headache and confusion. If Bella was really going to the ballet studio to meet the vampire who intended to kill her, and the equally bad Cullens were close behind-then I didn't have much time.


	7. Showdown

**7\. Showdown**

The ballet studio was on a half deserted street overrun with carefully manicured Yellow Dot and cactus. I parked the cruiser at the front and stared at the simple building. Everything seemed still in the deepening evening, but somehow that made the knot in my gut tighten. I checked my weapons-making sure the gun was loaded and the stake was tucked into my waistband at an angle that would make it difficult to notice.

I crept my way up the sandy stone walkway careful not to alert the vampires of my presence and walked up to the polished glass doors and pushed. To my surprise the door was open. I didn't hesitate to enter.

The darkness inside was murky but still. I pulled my flashlight off my belt and peered around. I stood in a very simple reception area with tile flooring and wallpapered walls. As I walked through, a walled photo collage caught my eye.

I wondered if Bella's picture was hidden among the many smiling eyes of little boys and girls who'd come through these doors, but I didn't have time to dwell. I walked on, coming across an office, but the door was locked.

The changing room was empty too. If this was anyone else I would have considered this a dead end and left to reassess...but it was Bella, and I was out of options, so I kept going through the darkened halls my breath getting more labored as I moved.

What if the Cullens had already gotten to her? I'd never find them.

I almost gave up but Bella's sudden cry of agony rang throughout the studio. I ran to her, past the reception area and the changing room until I was pushing my way through the heavy glass door of a large mirrored room with dark hardwood floors.

There she was. Crawling on her hand knees on the floor trying to get away from the blonde man that had broken into our house. The bullet wounds I'd given him had disappeared- _healed_...not even bruises marred the perfectly white skin around his eye. How…

He cornered her against a wall, taunting her with a hand-held camera. Her face was knotted in fright under a blanket of her limp dark hair. "Would you like to rethink your last request?," said the vampire.

I ran toward them, dropping the flashlight and drawing my gun.

"It's cruel really." The creature smiled darkly before pressing his long fingered hand on top of her leg. He pressed down, a nauseating snap could be heard as Bella cried out again in agony. "Wouldn't you rather have Edward try to find me?"

He slammed her head back against the mirrored wall. The glass shattered around her and as it fell to the floor it reflected the sunlight from the high windows and for the briefest moment the vampire's face shined, the radiance reflecting a kaleidoscope of light in the dim room.

I ran toward them, concern for my own safety dying as I grew closer. "Hey!"

His head snapped up at my scream. "You!" His eyes grew darker. "You're the one that shot me."

I fired at him. Faster than I could see he dodged the bullets and disappeared. I turned around the room seeing nothing but shadows and hearing nothing but the sound of my own frightened breathing and Bella's tormented sobbing.

My ears picked up the sound of movement behind me just in time to turn and find the red eyes of the vampire staring at me. A lustful smile spread across his lips and I saw his white, shiny fangs clearly. "Do you taste as good as you smell?"

He seized me in his steel-like grip and sank his fangs deep into the side of my neck. Sharp pain swallowed me, and I froze in his arms. His head jerked back and I could see my blood smeared across his face, glistening on his tongue, and dripping down his neck. "Not as good," He said as he licked my blood from the corners of his mouth. "But still fantastic!"

His mouth found my neck again and I inhaled as sharp pain overwhelmed me, almost bringing me to my knees. I tried to resist but his strength crushed my will to fight. My grip slackened as I was lured toward the comforting pull of death. The darker part of me wanted to give in to the power of this creature and let blackness take me—but somewhere in the darkness I heard Bella. She was crying. But how could I kill something so powerful—the stake!

I still felt it pressing into my side. I tightened my grip of the gun with whatever strength I had left and raised the barrel up toward him—any part of him, pulling the trigger with my numbed fingers.

He stumbled back, his hand over his lower abdomen as blood seeped through his shirt and drizzled down the front of his jeans. "You son of a bitch!" He was more annoyed than hurt. He stepped toward me, his wounds already healing.

I steadied myself but he was thrown back suddenly. Through my anemic haze I could just make out Edward Cullen's statuesque form. The two fought, their vampire strength breaking the glass of the studio's mirrored walls and ripping apart the wooden floorboards, leaving them scattered around the room. When the vampire was distracted Edward cradled Bella in his arms and tried to flee but the other vampire grabbed him and threw him back the other way.

Bella flew from Edwards arms and fell on top of shattered glass, moaning as she pulled shards from her skin. The vampire walked over and crouched down in front of her.

I reloaded.

As Edward tried to stand back up, the other vampire grabbed her wrist and bit down so hard I thought he meant to snap it in half. Her skin tore when Edward ran into him. I raised my gun again, and pointed it not at Edward, but at the other vampire. I fired three times.

One bullet struck the vampire in his neck. One struck his thigh. And the last barely grazed Edward Cullen. I didn't care. I fired again, hitting the vampire in his gut and chest at the same time. He screamed and cursed as he fell to the floor. I kept shooting. With every direct hit he screamed in agony—but he would not die.

Edward disappeared behind me, running wildly toward Bella as she thrashed on the floor in pain. I turned to stop him from taking her but I was pulled back by the blonde vampire. He reached back and punched me. I felt my ribs crack under the force.

The gun flew from my hand so I went for the stake tucked in my waistband. I raised it high, aiming for his heart but the creature grabbed my wrist before I could make the killing strike and squeezed until my hand numbed and the stake fell from it's limp grip. He threw me like a child would throw a toy he's grown bored with and I landed with a groan on top of the splintered floorboards.

I managed somehow to push myself up on sore hands and tried to crawl away but he was quick to grabbed me and slam me against the ground with so much force I almost lost consciousness again.

"I'm going to enjoy this," hatred spilled from his every word as he bared his fangs with the intention to kill.

Time slowed as I watched him lunge fang first at my throat. Each beat of my heart counted down to my death. One beat, he lunged. The next beat, my hands instinctively flew to my sides. With another beat, they searched. My fingers gripped around a splintered piece of floorboard. I held the piece of wood up to my heart and stabbed with all my strength. The vampire impaled himself on top of me.

His face grew paler for a moment and he looked down between us. The veins in his neck growing purple and bloated until without warning his youthful face became old and withered as he slumped over on his back next to me. I stood too quickly and nearly fell over from my injuries. His eyes found me as he gasped for air, his desperate shriveling fingers gripping around the jagged hardwood that now stuck out of his heart.

One last painful exhale and he was nothing but an old dry corpse staring stupidly up at me in a mask of frozen shock.

I swallowed the terror in my throat and stared. Was he truly dead?

I kicked his foot, readying myself for another fight but he collapsed into dust. The murder weapon slid down and clattered to the floor as if he had never been there. The only evidence was the damage done to the studio and the puncture wounds on my neck.

I turned back to find Bella passed out in Doctor Cullen's arms. Most of them were there, having materialized while I was battling the dead vampire. Doctor Cullen, Jasper, Alice, and the big one…Emmett I think. They stood there with their mouths open as they stared at me from behind wide red eyes.

"He killed him." Alice looked baffled. "I didn't see this—I didn't anticipate."

"We need to go." When doctor Cullen turned with Bella's limp form in his arms the rest of them turned as well.

"What about him?"

"Leave him."

"But he killed James. He's dangerous!"

"With the amount of blood he's lost he won't survive the night. We need to take care of Bella."

"It's gonna happen Edward. I've seen it."

Carlisle's voice cut through the others. "She can't die today. It's not _time_."

I stumbled after them as they ran away, fading into the haze of darkness like smoke above the horizon.

"Come back!" I tried to follow but my knees buckled and I fell forward landing face first on what was left of the floor.

As I collapsed into unconsciousness, the last thing I was aware of was hearing Edward Cullen's unbridled laughter.

* * *

"Mr. Swan."

The pull to keep my eyes shut against the pain was too great for me to answer immediately, so instead I tried drifting back off into kinder dreams.

"Mr. Swan." I felt a cool hand wrap gently around my forearm. She shook me ever so slightly.

My eyes squinted open against the harsh fluorescent lights. I tried to speak but my throat was thick and dry.

"Don't try to talk, Mr. Swan." The woman said. "Do you know what day it is? Nod yes or no."

I didn't think she saw the slight shaking of my head but she responded back to me. "It's Friday. You're at St. Joseph's Hospital. You've been here three days. Do you know your name?"

"Charles Swan." I croaked out.

"That's good. A doctor's going to come in later to assess you further and gage the extent of the damage."

"Damage?"

"They found you passed out a few blocks from here by your police car."

 _Police car...Bella! The Cullens-vampires!_

The memories came back in a flash of splintered information that struggled to fully form. I tried to move but found myself attached to the leads of heart and respiratory monitors, as well as an I.V. pole.

"Mr. Swan," Said the nurse. "You need to calm down."

"I need to get to Forks!"

"Sir, you hit your head very hard. They had to reset four of your ribs and put a cast on your arm from where you fractured your wrist. Your car's in an impound lot. You can't go anywhere right now."

My hands braced the rails that framed the sides of the bed and I tried to pull myself up into a sitting position but sharp pain braced chest and I groaned and let myself fall back on the bed.

"That's your ribs. It's going to take a few weeks to heal."

"I don't have a few weeks." I inhaled and got rewarded with more pain in my chest but swallowed it and attempted to pull myself up again.

"Mr. Swan! Please lay back you're just going to hurt yourself."

"I have to get home to my daughter."

"Isabella Swan?"

I stared at her. "Where is she?"

"She was in the hospital yesterday."

"And?"

"And her care was transferred into the hands of a doctor Carlisle Cullen of Forks Hospital."

"Goddamn it!" After the surge of adrenaline passed the pain came back and I gripped my side to ease the pain. "Who allowed her to even go back to Forks without my permission."

Her fingers tapped quickly over the keyboard. "The discharge paperwork was signed by Renee Dwyer."

"Her mother?"

"Yes. At the time you were incapacitated, so her medical decisions were left in the hands of her next of kin."

I couldn't be mad at Renee for this. She didn't know. "So she just flew in from Florida, signed Bella out, and left."

"No sir. She's still here. She's _your_ next of kin too."

I'd forgotten to change my POA after the divorce and anyway with my parents dead I had no other family to give the authority to. Still...I was surprised she stayed here just for me.

"She's staying at a hotel nearby," the nurse said as she checked my vital signs. "She told us to call her when you woke up."

I nodded. "What about getting me discharged?"

"That's not likely, Mr. Swan. With the extent of your injuries the doctor's probably not going to want to discharge you right away."

"Where's the doctor. Let me talk to him."

"His rounds aren't for another couple of hours but I'll make sure that as soon as he gets to the floor he knows you're awake and want to see him." She awkwardly rolled the electronic chart through the door. "And I'll call your wife too."

" _Ex_!"

* * *

About forty-five minutes later Renee came breezing into my room like it was natural. "Charlie! Oh, thank God." She came over, hovering over me.

"Where's Bella?"

"She's fine, Charlie. I sent her back to Forks."

"By herself?"

"She insisted. Anyway what was I supposed to do? Pack her up and move her to Jacksonville?"

" _Yes_!"

"And just pull her out of school? Move her away from her friends? I thought considering the situation it was better that her life remain as stable as possible."

"The situation?"

"Yeah. She fell down the stairs. I thought it might be too traumatizing to have a broken leg, a comatose father, and have her life suddenly uprooted. Plus I met that nice doctor Cullen and he assured me that he would watch her until we had word."

Carlisle Cullen was a smart man. "Word about what?" What could be so important that she'd let our child allegedly live by herself.

"We didn't know-" her voice broke. "Um, we didn't know if you'd wake up."

I was shocked. Had the vampire really done so much damage? I barely remembered now.

She continued, oblivious. "My plan was to give her a month in Forks so I could have time to transfer schools and pack and get ready for her...in case you-in case you.."

"Died?"

She covered her face with her hands and I heard her soft stifled cries. "What the hell happened, Charlie? She ran off with her boyfriend? Why didn't you call me?"

"Renee-"

"I didn't even know she was missing, Charlie! I had to find out from a goddamn Amber Alert!"

"I am so sorry. Everything just happened so fast."

"And what about you? They found you on the side of the road!?"

"I can't explain everything right now." I tried to put my hand over hers for comfort but it the strain was too great so I let it flop back down to my side. "You need to get me discharged out of this place."

"You're hurt."

"I need to get back to Forks. _Now_."

"Charlie you can't leave until you're better."

"Over a couple broken ribs?"

"And the head injury…"

"They can check up on me in Forks."

"I've never seen anyone want to get to Forks as much as you do," she almost smiled at that. "Alright. I'll talk to him."

It took another thirty-eight minutes for the doctor to show up. Renee and I sat there watching t.v. to keep from having to chat when the door swung open and an old man strolled in.

"Charlie Swan. I'm Doctor Harris."

Just like Renee had said it wasn't my broken bones that the doctor was concerned about but my broken head. I tried to convince him to discharge me but he fought me.

"Mr. Swan, your brain was swollen."

"I want to get out of here. Transfer me to one of the doctors at Forks Hospital- _not doctor Cullen_!"

"What if we watched you just for tonight? That way I can do the paperwork to get you transferred."

"It's a deal."

I spent the next day getting x-rays and MRIs, growing more impatient with the doctor's stalling techniques by the hour. When he was satisfied he took his sweet time signing the discharge paperwork-probably to make me angrier. I didn't apologize for being an asshole the last couple of days or see Renee off at the airport. Instead I got the police cruiser from the impound lot.

I was on my way back to Forks.


	8. Shield

**8\. Shield**

Barely any light broke through the canopy of trees that shielded the Cullen home against any smattering of early evening sunlight. Though, that probably suited them.

I'd parked the cruiser a ways off the path to their lair and hiked the rest of the way through freshly wet thrush. Behind an old leaning tree I crouched in a ditch just off the path from the East side of the home. My boots dug into the soft damp earth, digging for traction underneath the slick leaves that lay at the foot of the tree. As far as I could see the home was deserted but that didn't necessarily mean they wouldn't come back.

They weren't at my house and the school hadn't seen Bella, but there had been sightings of Cullen's around town. The post office, the school-the balls it takes to walk around like nothing was wrong. Like they hadn't left me there to bleed to death. That was it though, they thought I was either dead or close to it.

Using a branch for leverage I pulled myself up and over the mound. A dizzy spell gripped me as a throbbing started in my chest. I held my breath through the burning but crept forward all the same.

With each step the manor loomed larger and more inescapable. I walked on, pulling my gun from it's holster but keeping the fresh wooden stake I'd picked up at home hidden in my waistband. I stalked my way toward the back door and tried the handle but it was locked. Of course.

I took the butt of the gun and hit it against the glass door. It cracked. I swung again and it shattered. I reached my arm through the hole and unlocked the door. When I stepped through the threshold I was careful to bypass the shards of glass on the hardwood. I'm not sure how advanced their hearing is, but just in case I stepped lightly.

The air inside sat heavy and undisturbed. I kept my gun at the ready as I inched forward through the dining room. The polished wooden dining set sat perfectly aligned, perfectly untouched. Cardboard boxes were stacked in a corner. I eased my way over and carefully peeked in the one on top. There wasn't much in it except for a sparse amount of unused dishes and silverware.

A granite topped island divided the kitchen area. The counter-tops were stacked with the rest of the dishes. A few plates, glasses, a knife-block, cutting board-what you'd expect to find in any home. What made it so disturbing was that all of it was factory new. Not a scratch on the cutting board or a stain on a pot.

I continued my pace through the house, clearing the rooms as I went. A couple of overly pristine bathrooms were as polished as if it had been built yesterday and multiple bedrooms had been emptied out with the exception of a master with luxurious sheets still draped over it. No wrinkles, no tears, no wear down. Not a speck of dust had gathered in any nook or corner of the whole damn house. The only thing that seemed to be in use was the computer in Carlisle's office and an old piano with worn yellowed keys.

It was nothing more than a giant doll house. The Cullens liked to put in an extravagant show it seemed but looking harder revealed that this place- _this life_ they'd built was about as lived in as a museum exhibit. They didn't eat. They didn't sleep. They didn't shit. Why do they even bother with school? Why bother with work, or college, or buying all of this garbage if a vampire only wants one thing?

Upstairs in one of the bedrooms the frame of a bed sat lonely without a mattress. The bookshelves were empty too. More stacks of boxes revealed where the books had gone.

The Cullens were almost ready to run.

And they were trying to run with my daughter in tow. I didn't have much time to find them before they pulled their little disappearing act again, but I knew they were still hanging around. Carlisle would have been terminating his contract at the hospital right about now. Couldn't pull that doctor shtick without a good rapport with the previous healthcare facility.

And they'd have a hard time pulling five children out of school without the truancy department looking into it either, so I suppose they're going to try to transfer schools too. They were in town alright. The only thing I needed to do was find just one of them. Find a Cullen, catch a Bella, right?

As I was closing the boxes, I heard muffled voices coming from downstairs. I crept my way back down the hall until I was poised at the top of the stairwell. I didn't run down to engage, instead I listened.

"Charlie's been here. I can smell him." _Edward Cullen._

"I thought you said he died in Phoenix." The woman's voice was unfamiliar. It had to be either Rosalie or Esme.

"He should have."

"All of you have been sloppy. When I got back from trying to throw James off track all of Forks was on a manhunt for Bella. Then I hear you've destroyed a ballet studio in Phoenix."

"Everything is under control," Edward's voice remained unmoved.

"Not Bella."

"She's….more difficult than other humans."

"Difficult? She should be under your complete control by now. Why is she still fighting you?"

"Carlisle thinks it's because of her uniqueness. My powers don't work on her. Jasper can barely calm her. Only Alice's powers seem to have any complete effect. Her ability to hold off my compulsion for so long is likely a symptom of her gift."

I dared to crawl my way down a couple more steps until I could just see them standing near the kitchen. Edward Cullen's face was grim and still. The other vampire was about a foot shorter than Edward. Her back was turned to me, her long brown hair shielding most of her features. Movement caught my eye in the corner behind Edward. Bella lay there, her eyes closed against the world and her skeletal body propped against the wall on the floor.

My heart sank for a moment before she moved again. Still alive. I almost ran to her but stopped myself short. Better to wait for the opportunity.

"Her father is almost the same," Edward said. "Trying to listen to him sounds like static. I can only seem to hear him some of the time, but only in wisps and whispers. We got lucky at the airport."

"Even more reason to kill him. He'll come back. He followed all of you to Phoenix, he broke in here. He won't stop until he gets her back." The woman started pacing back and forth.

"Then the next time we see him I will kill him."

She stopped in front of him. "He's killed a vampire. He could kill another."

"You weren't there. It was simply beginner's luck."

"You never should have gone after a police officer's daughter. It was too easy for him figure us out."

"There was no other option."

"And how did he kill James anyway? You said James bit him…"

"He did. He bit him but Charlie was able to fight off the compulsion somehow."

Her voice came out in a whisper. "Just like Bella. Remarkable."

He nodded. "Put this talk behind you. Remember what Carlisle said. The ritual is our first priority."

"Still, you'll never smuggle her out of Fork's in time. He needs to be dealt with as soon as possible."

"And who would do it? I'm guarding Bella. Alice and Rose have already gone ahead to secure our housing. Carlisle is busy trying to transfer to the new town. Emmett is still cleaning up the mess in Phoenix. And Jasper is trying to find Jenk's-wherever he's disappeared to."

"I'll stay."

"Esme-"

"No, I should help all of you for once. I will stay and deal with Charlie. Afterward I will join the rest of you."

"You're not a fighter."

"But I am a part of this coven and I made a promise many nights ago to help Carlisle complete the ritual. Just as you all of you did."

"Alright," His voice genuinely softened as he leaned in and embraced her. "Please be careful."

I was down the stairs in an instant.

As they stood together, wrapped in each other's arms I pointed the gun toward Esme and fired. The bullet pierced the back of her shoulder and continued through Edward's chest. Esme's shrill scream hit my ears and I winced in pain. Edward's usually calm face became etched in frown lines. His eyes grew wide as he gaped at the blood between them.

Through the ringing in my ears I could hear his startled voice, "I didn't hear him! My God he's just like Bella. I can't _hear_ him!"

Esme turned around, her beautiful face red with blood and her eyes a mask contempt. "Edward, get her out of here."

"You're injured!"

"As are you. Take Bella to the rendezvous point, meet up with Carlisle and the others. I'm right behind you."

I pointed the gun at Edward, ready to fire at him again but before I could pull the trigger Esme Cullen had raced to my side and gripped my arm, her fingers digging through the gauze of the cast and piercing my skin. I fired anyway, hitting Edward in his right forearm as he was trying to pick up Bella. His agonized cry sent tremors through the house, making my ears ache and the windows shake.

Esme knocked the gun from my hand and pushed me, throwing me back toward the kitchen. I landed on top of the kitchen island, my breath catching when my rib snapped. I slid over the edge to put the island between us and then planted my feet firmly.

She bared her fangs, taking a defensive stance between me and Edward. By then Edward had gathered Bella into his arms. Bella looked at me her eyes as dark as a corpse. Her lips parted slightly and she wheezed out a sorrowful, "Dad…".

I stood there hunched over, my hand pressed into my side trying to manually hold my rib in place with the arm still healing under my cast. I wasn't going to be able to save Bella until I dealt with Esme Cullen. She didn't take her eyes off me, but the vampires seemed to communicate without words.

Edward ran through the door, his speed so fast I barely noticed. I tried to follow but a low hiss came from behind as Esme grabbed me by the neck. She slammed me against the island easily, the muscles in her forearm barely flexing as her grip tightened.

I grabbed her neck right back and tried pushing her away but she barely moved, instead her fingernails dug deep enough into my neck to draw blood. "I don't usually like to resort to violence," she said in a low hungry voice. "However, if it saves my family….well, I'll make the exception for you Chief Swan."

Her fangs glistened when her lips parted. I saw the deep red of her tongue, wet and hungry as her mouth opened wider. Her eyes glazed over as they caressed the veins in my neck. She leaned closer, ready for her meal but I gripped the handle of one of the knives in the knife block and stabbed at her heart with all the strength I had. It lodged itself between her pale flesh.

She seemed puzzled for a moment, her golden eyes blinking back into consciousness. She looked down and stared at the knife. Her laughter was pleasant, hell it was charming. "You're not the first abusive man I've ever dealt with."

Her long white fingers wrapped around the hilt of the knife. She slid it out from between her breasts with all the emotion of a tick, her shirt licking up the blood.

"A pity," she said. "I was fond of this blouse."

She looked at me again, all thirst for my blood gone. "Dying by feeding wouldn't have been bad. It would have hurt at first, however, eventually you could have died relatively peacefully. Since you insist, I'll give you the death you seek."

She raised the knife above her head, ready to plunge it into my chest. When it came down it met my left forearm. It got lodged there between the muscle and tendon and bone. As she struggled to pry it out of me, my right hand gripped the wooden tent stake from the band of my jeans. She only saw the end of it as it plowed forward into the freshly opened wound over her heart.

Her face etched with pain before her body slumped on top of me. Her head fell against my shoulder, draping me under her soft chestnut hair. I felt her body tremble and her dry voice croak out a hoarse, "Why..", before her cold skin grew colder and dryer.

When she stopped moving I tried to push her off of me but the slightest pressure turned her once marble-like skin into dust. She slid through my fingers into a pile of nothing onto the floor. I was left holding that blouse she'd loved so much.

It took me a moment to regain my senses. Deep panicky breath choked me as sweat began to puddle on my skin. I grabbed my forearm when I registered the pain. The kitchen knife was still lodged in my arm. I took a deep breath and gripped the blade tightly. I slid the blade out fast, the metal burning as it slid against the open wound. The blood rushed from my head and my knees buckled, but I refused to pass out.

Instead I grabbed a kitchen towel and wrapped it around my arm as tight as I could. I left it there for a beat before checking the wound. The knife had gone in and come out mostly clean, but if I didn't do something to at least slow the bleeding I would croak right here in the kitchen beside the dirt pile formally known as Esme.

Maybe I can find some needle and thread around here. I looked around for a sewing kit of some kind but apparently when you bought new clothes every week it didn't facilitated the need for one. Figures. I was going to just say 'fuck it' and wrap my arm with duct tape when I remembered that Carlisle is a doctor.

His medical bag was in the office where I'd seen it. I opened it and dumped the contents on the large oak desk and clawed my way through it until I found a surgical suture pack. Inside was the needle, sharp and curved with suture pre-attached to it. I held my bleeding arm in front of me, took a breath, and tried to delicately sew the wound shut.

I'd had some emergency training, but it hardly came into to play on a daily basis with the exception of CPR or simply bandaging someone up. This was a little beyond my expertise but I was running out of time. I was expecting it to hurt each time my shaky hands came to dip back into my skin but the area around the wound had begun to swell and numb and half the time I didn't feel it.

When it was done I wrapped Esme's silk blouse tightly around it, found my gun, and ran out into the darkness.


	9. New Moon

**9\. New Moon**

When I stumbled outside, the world had gone black. I pulled out my flashlight and gripped it in the numbing fingers of my left hand. Everything below the elbow throbbed from the exertion, but I ignored it and focused instead on the trembling spot of light that illuminated the darkened woods. Edward Cullen was nowhere in sight.

Faint screams echoed in the distance. Spinning around I trained the flashlight at the edge of the woods. East—no, _north_ east. I sprinted off into the wilderness, careless of my own pain.

The ground was still saturated under my shoes as I ran forward, dodging trees and stumbling over overgrowth. I ran until my legs ached and my lungs burned. Until my eyes adapted to the incomprehensible muddle of darkness. Until my ears no longer heard the vague echo of wolves near the coast or felt the prickling of thin branches scrapping across my skin. Until I almost lost hope.

And then another scream came, louder this time.

They were close. I gathered my resolve and pushed forward through the dense woods, led by the small glow of the flashlight and protected only by the gun gripped tightly in my other hand. I hadn't gone more than ten yards when my ears caught the crunch of leaves under heavy footprints. I raced around the last mass of trees and stepped out into a pasture so still I was alarmed by its picturesque eeriness.

And there they were. Edward dragging Bella forward as she struggled feebly in his arms. When he was aware of my presence he turned expectantly. His calm face mutated into a glower when he realized it was me. His glare turned to my arm wrapped in Esme's silk blouse. He'd thought I was her.

"Where is Esme?" he said with a sneer.

"Let her go!" My voice echoed out into the night with enough fury to unease him.

"What have you done with my mother?"

"You've got three seconds to get your hands off my daughter."

His voice grew heavy with anger, "What have you done to Esme?"

"I left her in a pile on your kitchen floor!"

Bella slipped from his grasp and crumpled to the ground. He lunged and let free an enraged, otherworldly shriek. I felt my courage collapsing under his grotesque, inhuman glare. I froze, suddenly paralyzed by fear.

Edwards grisly form drew closer, but my feet stayed planted to the ground. Had I succumbed to the vampire's madness too? Or was it my own fear? My arm throbbed. The pain was the only thing more real than my fear. It was tangible. It was in the flesh, and the ache of it pulled me back from the edge of the abyss.

Somehow, I was able to shoot him. The bullet hit him in the chest and he inhaled a gasp of pain. I shot again and again until his body was riddled with bullet wounds. His torso was tattered and gory. Blood had seeped through his well-tailored clothes. Stained his white skin red. He wailed with pain but still stood. Injured but not dead.

I got ready to shoot again but stopped. Behind him Bella stirred. She stood, her bony frame steadying as she looked between us with a lifeless gaze. Edward stretched one long commanding arm toward her, beckoning her.

I screamed, "Bella, run!"

My voice didn't reach her. Instead her empty gaze stayed glued to Edward. She took an unthinking step toward him, her mind fully entranced with the vampire. I jumped to my feet as Edward wordlessly summoned her to his side.

My fingers trembled as I pulled the trigger once again. Nothing. The gun slipped from my fingers as I ran forward. I rushed him, reaching to my side, expecting to feel the wooden grip of the stake, but I'd left it on the floor in the Cullen's kitchen. And there was Edward; teeth glistening with rage as he ran toward me, ready for my final assault. I accepted my fate. If she somehow could escape while he was killing me…then it was worth it.

Time slowed as I waited to die. Sweat beaded my forehead. My heart drummed in expectation. I closed my eyes…and then nothing…Edward had stopped moving. He stood as still as a statue, listening. I listened too, but nothing was out of the ordinary in these woods. Wind rustled the tall trees, insects chirped loudly, wolves howled in the distance. And for a moment, Edward's face flushed with fear.

His contempt filled eyes found me again but instead of attacking, he moved back, deeper into the forest. He was retreating. I watched as he slithered his way back through the labyrinth of trees until he began to fade into the mist of darkness. To my horror, Bella was suddenly running after him.

"No!" I called out to her, but my words still had no effect. Whatever power he'd forced on my daughter's mind remained.

I tried to give chase but fell to my knees, finally succumbing to my own wounds. I had nothing left. I would never be able to keep up with her like this.

Even though it pained me, I needed to go back for help.

* * *

"Chief, you need to hold still."

I squirmed as the needle wove in and out of my wound. "I need to find her."

"The whole town's looking for her. Right now you need to worry about not getting an infection from this terrible stitch job."

"It can wait."

"Infections don't wait."

What seemed like forever had only been a few hours. I'd managed to stumble my way back to the Cullen house and then drive myself to the police station. Once I got there the other officers had taken one look at me and called an ambulance before I even had a chance to explain about Bella.

But now I sat in the back of the ambulance getting my arm re-stitched by a sleepy-eyed paramedic. "They'll find her," he assured me.

My voice was strained from exhaustion. "I should be out there. I should be helping—"

"You did everything you could. They've got all of Forks combing the woods. And they've called the tribal police to help with the search. They'll find her."

I wish I could believe that. After he finished me up they gave me some glorified Tylenol and sent me home. I wouldn't have gone except they'd turned my lawn into the base of operations for the search party. By the time I pulled up there were dozens of people mulling about with maps and flashlights.

It was my old friend Billy Black who greeted me and filled me in. "Most of the people are already in the woods, Charlie," he said as he traced routes on a map.

"The Cullen house?"

"Some of them drove up there to search around the area. And the volunteers from La Push started from the shore and are sweeping back inland." "We've got officers leading the search further south."

"Thanks. Thanks for being here."

"Of course."

It was another hour before the search parties started to return. They slumped up, men and women who had been my neighbors and friends for my entire life and people who didn't know me personally but had known Bella or Renee. Some were ready to call it quits. Even if they did, I would never stop searching.

It was when another group of volunteers pulled off to go home that someone yelled out in surprise, "Sam's got her!"

I turned to where the others were looking. My panic dissolved when I saw her. She was being carried in the arms of a man with deep brown skin and cropped black hair. "She's alright." He called to the crowd in a deep voice.

I ran to her and pulled her from his grip. I didn't wait for anyone to speak, I just started moving toward the house. I wanted her safe behind those walls, safe in her bed. Some of the others followed on my heels; a couple of my officers, some volunteers, curious neighbors, Dr. Gerandy from the hospital, Harry Clearwater trying to keep them from crowding me, Jacob Black trying to get a good look at Bella, and Billy trying to keep pace in his wheelchair.

The person nearest to me was Sam. He kept pace with me, pushing people back when they got too close like my own personal security guard. He was about to follow me right into the house. That made me uncomfortable. I didn't know him. But at the same time I didn't want to be rude to the man who had brought her home.

I turned to him at the threshold of the house, "I got her. Thank you, Sam."

It looked for a moment like he would disregard my request, but he readjusted and nodded in compliance. He stepped back and instead helped Harry keep the others outside. Dr. Gerandy followed me as I ran Bella upstairs to her bed and tucked her in as if she were no more than three years old. She was cold, clammy, and unconscious, but she was alive—just barely. I left her in bed with Gerandy starting his examination of her.

Downstairs Harry and Billy waited in the living room. The scene of chaos that had been my front yard was down to a trickle, and even more people were starting to leave. "We told the rest of the search party that Bella's been found." Harry peaked out from under his baseball cap. He was the oldest of us, with a face lined by a stressful life and a head full of hair that was more gray than black now. "Is she okay?"

"She will be."

"Has she been hurt?" Billy asked. "Any wounds or scratches on her?"

"She's fine. For now, she just wants to sleep." That would have to be a satisfactory answer for now.

"What was she doing out in the woods?" Harry stared at me hard, like he was waiting for a lie.

"…Her boyfriend broke up with her."

"The Cullen kid?"

"Yeah. The Cullens left town earlier today."

They passed a look between each other. "Good riddance," Harry spat the words out like poison.

"I think maybe she went out there to clear her head and got lost." I gave them what I hoped was a casual shrug. "Teenage girls. Who knows what they're thinking."

Billy smiled at that. "You don't have to tell me. I got two of 'em."

Harry nudged Billy on the shoulder and gave him a grim look. "We've got to go, Charlie."

"Yeah. Want to get Jacob back home. Some of the kids are gonna have a little get together on the sea cliffs."

"So early in the morning?"

"They're celebrating."

"Celebrating what?"

Harry threw Billy a stern glance. Billy smiled kindly, "Hell, if I know. Just something the kids are doing."

When they left I watched as Jacob moved from where he had been sitting on the porch and helped his father down the stairs. After they pulled off the phone rang. It was no one but people from around town calling to check in on us. I got a lot of those for the next few minutes. Except for one call that came from Mrs. Stanley concerning fires on the sea cliffs.

"Some kids from La Push are out there. It's nothing to worry about."

"It's three in the morning, Charlie."

Just when I hung up with her Dr. Gerandy came down the stairs. "How is she?"

"Exhausted," he furrowed his brow. "But other than that, she'll be okay. Seems a little thin though. Make sure she's eating. I'll come back and check on her tomorr—this afternoon."

With Gerandy gone I headed back upstairs. I grabbed another couple of wooden tent stakes and my shotgun and made myself cozy in a chair across from her bed. I watched her shoulders rise and fall as she slept.

I was so tired. The meds I'd gotten from the doctors had taken away most of my pains. I hadn't slept in days; not since the hospital in Phoenix and I felt the pressure of drowsiness trying to lull me to sleep. But I refused. What if they came back tonight? Edward had fled. Something had scared him, but what, I didn't know or care. All I knew was, he was gone for now.

But what about the other Cullens? True, they'd apparently left town, but nothing was stopping them from coming back to finish what they'd started?

"Edward…" His name came from Bella's lips on a weakened whisper. Not even in her dreams was she free of the bastard. Would her mind ever be free again? Would she ever be herself again?

I could only pray. And in the meanwhile, if they did come back, I'd be ready.

* * *

 **A/N: I've gotten busy working on a couple of original stories elsewhere, so this chapter will serve as a soft ending if I never come back. If I do pick this back up (it's very likely), I'm planning to give New Moon the same treatment.**


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